U.S. Anti-Doping Agency Official Presents at UA Sports Management Lecture

Travis Tygart, CEO of the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, is the featured speaker during the Distinguished Lectures in Sport Management at 1 p.m. Sept. 27.

Note to Editors and News Directors: Travis Tygart will be available for phone interviews prior to the Sept. 27 lecture. Contact Annie Skinner, USADA media relations manager, 719/785-2046 or askinner@usada.org, to arrange a time. Tygart will also be available for interviews immediately following the lecture.Contact Kim Eaton, UA media relations, 205/348-8325 or kkeaton@ur.ua.edu, if interested.

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — The head of the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency will discuss ethics in the sporting arena during a Sept. 27 lecture at The University of Alabama.

USADA’s CEO Travis T. Tygart will present as part of the Distinguished Lectures in Sport Management series at 1 p.m. Friday, Sept. 27, in 247 Bryant Hall. The lecture, titled “Playing Fair and Winning: An Inside View of Ethics and Integrity from the Lance Armstrong Case,” which is geared toward students in the College of Human Environmental Sciences Sport Management program, is open to the public.

The evidence obtained by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency during its investigation into the sport of cycling resulted in the sanctioning of two team doctors and several high profile cyclists, including sports icon Lance Armstrong, who was stripped of his Tour de France cycling titles after USADA uncovered “the most sophisticated and professionalized doping scheme that sport had ever seen.”

Tygart will share his insights on how, in today’s win-at-all-cost culture, it is critical that the next generation of leaders hear firsthand that competing fair with integrity is the only way to truly win in sports and in life.

Tygart became the agency’s CEO in September 2007. In his 11 years at USADA, he has also served as the director of legal affairs and as senior managing director and general counsel, where he has prosecuted cases on behalf of clean athletes before the American Arbitration Association and the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

As CEO, Tygart works closely with the USADA’s board of directors to carry out the organization’s mission of “preserving the integrity of competition, inspiring true sport and protecting the rights of U.S. athletes.”

Tygart has served as an advocate for the integrity of sport and clean athletes, testifying in front of various committees of the U.S. Congress on the use of performance-enhancing drugs in sport, the need for hGH testing in all sports, regulation of the supplement industry and the ratification of the UNESCO international treaty against doping in sport. He has also testified internationally in front of committees of the German Parliament and the French Senate about creating effective anti-doping policy and on the issues surrounding doping in sport.

Under Tygart’s leadership, USADA’s efforts to protect clean athletes have included cooperating with Federal authorities on numerous investigations, including the international steroid bust, Operation Raw deal and the international doping conspiracy involving the BALCO laboratory in San Francisco.

Tygart led the investigation into the U.S. Postal Service Pro-Cycling Team Doping Conspiracy and the Lance Armstrong case, which uncovered the most sophisticated and professionalized doping scheme that sport had ever seen. Tygart’s tenure as CEO also produced the groundbreaking research on the importance of true sport, “What Sport Means in America,” and the “True Sport Report.”

Tygart has been an expert presenter at many national and international conferences and symposiums. He has also served on various committees and boards, including the board of directors for the Sports Lawyers Association, the board of governors of the Partnership for Clean Competition, the Society for Major League Baseball Strength and Conditioning Coaches, the House Government Reform Committee’s Zero Tolerance Roundtable, the Institute of National Anti-Doping Agencies and was appointed by the World Anti-Doping Agency as the vice-chair for its Independent Observers Team, which monitored the doping control and legal processes at the 2008 Summer Olympic Games in Beijing, China.

Tygart has been recognized by Sports Illustrated as one of the 50 Most Powerful People in Sports; named to the “TIME 100” list of most influential people in the world for 2013; named one of the top 12 World Sports Personalities of the Year by Sport Intern; one of the World’s Most Influential Sports Personalities by Inside Sportand was one of the Colorado Lawyers of the Year named by Colorado Law Weekly. Tygart has also published numerous papers and law review articles.

Originally from Jacksonville, Fla., Tygart graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a bachelor’s degree in philosophy, and, in 2010, received the University’s Distinguished Young Alumni Award. Tygart went on to get his J.D. from Southern Methodist University in 1999, graduating Order of the Coif.

The University of Alabama, a student-centered research university, is experiencing significant growth in both enrollment and academic quality. This growth, which is positively impacting the campus and the state's economy, is in keeping with UA's vision to be the university of choice for the best and brightest students. UA, the state's flagship university, is an academic community united in its commitment to enhancing the quality of life for all Alabamians.